Recipes from the Kitchen of Dr. Amy Rothenberg

I spent much of the last 20+ years of raising a family doing the lion's share of cooking. I am not someone who was ever oriented to cookbooks or recipes. I kept wholesome foods in the cupboard, belonged to a community supported agriculture farm or grew things in my garden. I would look around and make food from whatever inspiration I drew from the ingredients on hand.

An unexpected joy of the empty nest is the absence of urgency & constancy of everything related to food: shopping, planning, cooking & cleaning up-- all of which I poured myself into AND don't miss a bit! I always felt that I was quietly modeling the importance of food, family time and how to nourish oneself to my kids. But now Paul & I will sometimes have eggs for dinner or cheese and crackers and sliced mango for lunch and feel entirely liberated! I feel less pressure to prepare all the food for all the people all the time and with a bit of time and space opened up, intermittently, I am enjoying cooking all the more! On these pages I'd like to share some of our family's favorite recipes.

To start off, I am going right back to basics! Chicken soup! Most every culture in the world has its bone broths, made from the animals available and cooked long for maximal nutrition. I think of chicken soup as one of the best healing foods we have.

I am always encouraging my patients to eat more dark leafy green vegetables, one of the most nutrient-dense foods you can ingest. Many of us did not grow up eating leafy greens and some even find a big batch of kale or red chard a bit intimidating! What do you do with all that stuff? And why is it so important for me to eat?

When I make a main dish, I usually plan to make extra, then I have for another dinner or for lunchtime leftovers. Many of the main dishes in our home are vegetarian but we also enjoy the occasional piece of fish or chicken and as it becomes more available meats from locally raised, grass fed animals.

Whenever I am planning I meal, I like to have a main star and then one or two co-stars. For lunch or dinner one of these co-stars is usually a salad. The other is often a veggie side dish or a small homemade biscuit or a fruit compote. Check out some of these side dishes to compliment the other food you’re preparing.

I always tell patients that the body reflects the habitual, not the occassional. So a treat now and again can be just the thing! We have here some of our favorite desserts, when you just have to have something sweet to finish a meal, lift the spirits or distract you from the toils of the day!